


Leap of Faith

by mapplestrudel



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bookshop, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fluff, Modern Thedas, Romantic Fluff, it's more like heaven though, join me in my OC/OC hell, with those two fluffdorks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-08
Updated: 2018-05-08
Packaged: 2019-05-04 01:07:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,081
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14581590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mapplestrudel/pseuds/mapplestrudel
Summary: All that Din wants is the "Catdule", but then he slips and gets a little more than that ^_^





	Leap of Faith

**Author's Note:**

> This was inspired by a [Romace Asks](https://mapplestrudel.tumblr.com/post/173081925906/romance-asks) tumblr prompt by @spaceborn--vagabond:  
>  _What was the first moment that they knew they were in love with their LI?_
> 
> It is also available as [audiofic on my tumblr](https://mapplestrudel.tumblr.com/post/173648282271/i-wrote-a-little-thing-the-other-day-and) ^_^

This bookshop!AU is set in a modern-ish Thedas and starts in an animal shelter, which becomes Rona’s temporary home. One day Din comes in and wants to adopt a cat, but he can’t choose, so he becomes a weekly volunteer. Rona meanwhile is in “social cactus mode” because she’s still deeply hurt by her previous relationship with bookshop tycoon Milligan. Slowly but slowly she opens up over the following months, and she and Din cautiously become friends, growing closer as they share duty time at the shelter or work together to bring Din’s ideas for a redesign of the “cat leisure room” to life. They have a funny silly night with their hands stuck in the Evil Vending Machine From Hell. And then some time after that, Din comes into the kitchen/common room of the animal shelter, looking for the “Catdule”, a folder with notes on all the cats and their special needs. It’s on the counter beside Rona and she gives it to him and Din thanks her and without even thinking pecks a little kiss on the side of her head and goes back to the cats, whistling a merry tune. Rona meanwhile stands there, her mouth opens and closes a few times, her face going through different stages of blushing and confusion.

Halfway to the cats, it dawns on Din what he has done. He knows Rona is very peculiar with touches in general, and he rushes back to find her still frozen to her spot.

“Rona! Are you… I didn’t…I’m sorry.. I didn’t even think… Are you okay?”

She looks at him, thinking, head dipped to the side, eyes squinted, and nods. “Yes…,” she whispers, searching for more words. “Yes, I…,” she scrunches her nose and scratches her head and throws a shy look at him over her glasses, “I liked it...”

“You liked it?” Din’s shoulders relax a little. He allows himself a little smile, but he still looks at her attentively, standing two meters away from her. She nods again, and he sees how her mind is racing as all her little face muscles twitch with every new thought.

“Can…” Rona exhales, creases her brows and looks away as if she thought better than voicing her thought. “Can I… uhm…” Another sigh tumbles from her lips, then she searches for his eyes again. “Can I give you a hug?” It’s barely a whisper but no challenge for Din’s elf ears.

He knows that hugs are not Rona’s thing at all, so he smiles his bright signature smile and slightly opens his arms without moving from his spot. “Sure!”

A few cautious steps later, Rona hugs him, lightly at first, but then she buries her face into his shoulder, smells him, feels him, holds onto him for dear life - and feels _safe_ wrapped up in his arms. And after a while Din dares and presses another kiss to her temple.

“I like you, Rona,” he whispers. “A great deal at that.”

He swallows hard and squeezes his eyes shut, bracing himself for a shove, a slap, whatever, but all that follows is a whimper from her as she melts even more into him and starts shaking.

“Oh dear! Uhm… ” Din disentangles from their hug to see her face, takes a small step backwards. “I didn’t mean… I mean, I did.. but…” A slight panic brushes his face. “You’re crying!”

“Sorry…!” Rona sniffs and sets her glasses on top of her head to wipe off some tears.

“Why?”

“I don’t know…” she croaks and looks at him with big grey eyes, her vision blurred by some more tears and the lack of her glasses.

“Hmm,” Din considers her answer. “But is it sad or happy tears?”

“Both?” She gives him a crooked, apologetic smile and takes her glasses to wipe them clean with the hem of her t-shirt.

“How so?” Din waits for her to explain, but he fidgets with his hoodie’s zipper, not entirely sure how to handle the situation. She needs room, he knows, but he also wants to wipe her tears away and run his fingers through her hair and hug her and tell her that it’s all going to be okay.

Rona meanwhile still wipes at her glasses. They are clean already, but she, too, needs to occupy her hands as feelings bubble up from deep down. A part of her fights against them, refuses to acknowledge them, warns her: _stupid little girl making the same stupid mistake once again. Stupid. Stupid! STUPID!_ And she clenches her teeth and scowls, and with a deep breath in closes her eyes. She opens them again as she exhales and readjusts her glasses on her nose.

And she sees his blue-green gaze, focussed, concern written over the jester’s sparkle, and she sees his hands writhing nervously, and remembers how they repaired the shelter’s delivery bike, how they sketched his ideas for the cats room, how they made chicken soup when she was sick, how gently they pick up scared and sick newcomers at the shelter - _hands of care, hands of creation_ \- and she takes a leap of faith.

“I like you, too”, she whispers.

_Fists of fear and demolition! Destroy! Destroy!_

“But I’m scared.”

Din nods and wipes off a stray tear with his thumb. She had hinted at things that happened in her last relationship, and he figures that this is why she is scared.

“How – … hm…” He stops and thinks, searching the floor for words. He’s not good at these things, but Maker knows he’s gonna try. “How about you … i don’t know… try to sort through it, you know, liking.. liking me and being scared… Like, chew it… ? I don’t know.. but I can help! … chewing… or whatever, really. Or if you need a hug… I can do hugs… I’m pretty good at them, right? Hugs are awesome.. and headscratches… and you! … and, and..” He sighs in frustration. “Ugh, I’m sorry, I’m not good at this… but… Well, I wanna help.. But I don’t want to scare you off… I don’t know… How about I’ll keep my distance, and if.. if… if you need a hug or help or… well, anything, you’ll let me know?”

“I’d like that.” Rona nods and sniffs, and Din feels pretty proud of himself, once more wrapping his arms around her, and he smiles from ear to ear as Rona settles into their hug again, nose into his shoulder, her head dipped against his.

“Awesome!”


End file.
